We have to consider Thomas' contract. He's what, a 2nd round pick? That's appreciable money for any player, especially one with health and fumbling issues who's in danger of falling to 3rd on the depth chart at his postion.

If Lamar Miller outplays Daniel Thomas, then it would make sense to move forward with only Miller considering that Thomas would be a waste of money.

If a light came on for Daniel Thomas and he and Miller looked outstanding then potentially Bush would be let go because of Bush's high price-tag. I DO NOT envision that happening but it's a hypothetical answer to your question.

If Daniel Thomas was a late-round pick his production wouldn't matter as much but since that's not the case his production must be weighed against his salary and right now it's looking like between Bush, Thomas and Miller, there's going to be an odd man out.

And none of that but one paragraph is about how having Thomas would keep us from signing Bush. It was basically all about how signing Bush could make Thomas expendable, which is far easier to understand than the converse.

Thomas is scheduled to make $661k next year and $816k in 2014. By comparison, Miller makes $480k and $570k in those years. Money is not going to be the reason he stays or goes. Pretty much the only variable in the equation of Thomas's future with the Dolphins is his own performance.

Could've answered 'his play' but I figured that would be lazy and dismissive. Either way, I don't think Thomas--or anyone else--will "hinder" us from doing what we want with Reggie Bush. In those terms you could've used any name aside from Daniel Thomas and the answer would remain the same.

We're not behind the 8-ball in terms of money, thankfully, but Thomas (as you and I agree) can certainly influence what we do, maybe more than anyone else.

Think about it this way. Get rid of Thomas and now you have 3 running backs, one of which is a return man. That allows you to have players else where

I doubt you're gonna save a roster spot unless Thigpen shows them something as a real back. If Thomas is gone, most likely he'll be replace by a different back.

Thats a good point.

Bpastermack, after watching some highlights of him just now, you're right he doesn't run with any power. He is a guy that is light on his feet.

Hell no he doesn't run with power. That's my point.

Thomas' only saving grace is that he has potential with the ball in his hands on the outside and in space. That's what he did at Kansas as far as I know but to my knowledge he didn't do it against NFL defenses.

Bush is the center piece to the offense. Resigning him seems like a no-brainer, but then again, holding on to Brandon Marshall seemed like a no-brainer as well.

To me, Bush is way to important on and off the field for this team. I'd keep him and pay him well.

I agree the front office will have a lot of pressure to resign Bush but he is not important. His skillset is that of change of direction, quick back with speed. That seems like the same skillset Lamar Miller has. I will never agree to paying a RB a boat load of money, especially one who will experience production decrement moving forward. The RB they need to get rid of is Thomas. He is the third wheel._________________"Yesterday Is History, Tomorrow Is A Mystery, And Today Is A Gift. That Is Why It Is Called The Present.""
— — Master Oogway from Kung Fu Panda

Bush is the center piece to the offense. Resigning him seems like a no-brainer, but then again, holding on to Brandon Marshall seemed like a no-brainer as well.

To me, Bush is way to important on and off the field for this team. I'd keep him and pay him well.

I agree the front office will have a lot of pressure to resign Bush but he is not important. His skillset is that of change of direction, quick back with speed. That seems like the same skillset Lamar Miller has. I will never agree to paying a RB a boat load of money, especially one who will experience production decrement moving forward. The RB they need to get rid of is Thomas. He is the third wheel.

See i don't think Bush will want a lot of Money to stay here in Miami. I think it will be good money but not huge Chris Johnson money. Get Lamar Miller better at pass blocking and we could have two very fast running backs.

Imagine two fast explosive runningbacks and an explosive WR or two explosive WRs._________________
UniversalAuthor

Bush is the center piece to the offense. Resigning him seems like a no-brainer, but then again, holding on to Brandon Marshall seemed like a no-brainer as well.

To me, Bush is way to important on and off the field for this team. I'd keep him and pay him well.

I agree the front office will have a lot of pressure to resign Bush but he is not important. His skillset is that of change of direction, quick back with speed. That seems like the same skillset Lamar Miller has. I will never agree to paying a RB a boat load of money, especially one who will experience production decrement moving forward. The RB they need to get rid of is Thomas. He is the third wheel.

If you remember, ovaw, we had a similar discussion on this years back in regards to AP. You have turned me. But, I do think that while Bush and Miller have a similar skill set, Bush does certainly (as of this exact moment) provide more playmaking ability and is (surprisingly) a better runner up the gut. He'd probably get us an extra yard or two sometimes, and maybe an extra big play here or there as opposed to Miller. But he definitely isn't worth the dough he'd demand. I agree completely there.

As for Thomas, I'd keep him. He's a great backup to have- cheap, provides a different running style (power), and he has been good in short yardage situations thus far this year. He's not great but he's OK. I would start using Miller more than Thomas, though.

Bush is the center piece to the offense. Resigning him seems like a no-brainer, but then again, holding on to Brandon Marshall seemed like a no-brainer as well.

To me, Bush is way to important on and off the field for this team. I'd keep him and pay him well.

I agree the front office will have a lot of pressure to resign Bush but he is not important. His skillset is that of change of direction, quick back with speed. That seems like the same skillset Lamar Miller has. I will never agree to paying a RB a boat load of money, especially one who will experience production decrement moving forward. The RB they need to get rid of is Thomas. He is the third wheel.

If you remember, ovaw, we had a similar discussion on this years back in regards to AP. You have turned me. But, I do think that while Bush and Miller have a similar skill set, Bush does certainly (as of this exact moment) provide more playmaking ability and is (surprisingly) a better runner up the gut. He'd probably get us an extra yard or two sometimes, and maybe an extra big play here or there as opposed to Miller. But he definitely isn't worth the dough he'd demand. I agree completely there.

As for Thomas, I'd keep him. He's a great backup to have- cheap, provides a different running style (power), and he has been good in short yardage situations thus far this year. He's not great but he's OK. I would start using Miller more than Thomas, though.

Don't sleep on Lamar Miller's strength. I watched him a lot in college and he played a lot like Ryan Williams did for VT. May not be a huge Running back but isn't afraid to lower his shoulder and fight for that extra yard._________________
UniversalAuthor

Bush is the center piece to the offense. Resigning him seems like a no-brainer, but then again, holding on to Brandon Marshall seemed like a no-brainer as well.

To me, Bush is way to important on and off the field for this team. I'd keep him and pay him well.

I agree the front office will have a lot of pressure to resign Bush but he is not important. His skillset is that of change of direction, quick back with speed. That seems like the same skillset Lamar Miller has. I will never agree to paying a RB a boat load of money, especially one who will experience production decrement moving forward. The RB they need to get rid of is Thomas. He is the third wheel.

If you remember, ovaw, we had a similar discussion on this years back in regards to AP. You have turned me. But, I do think that while Bush and Miller have a similar skill set, Bush does certainly (as of this exact moment) provide more playmaking ability and is (surprisingly) a better runner up the gut. He'd probably get us an extra yard or two sometimes, and maybe an extra big play here or there as opposed to Miller. But he definitely isn't worth the dough he'd demand. I agree completely there.

As for Thomas, I'd keep him. He's a great backup to have- cheap, provides a different running style (power), and he has been good in short yardage situations thus far this year. He's not great but he's OK. I would start using Miller more than Thomas, though.

I agree, Thomas has some value but should Bush get hurt Miller should see the lions share of the carries with THomas performing his same short yardage role. The game almost slows down when he has the ball. A good example is playing the fast version of Ms Pac Man and having to go back to playing the normal version. It is just hard to watch after you are accustomed to watching Bush and Miller change direction and make people miss._________________"Yesterday Is History, Tomorrow Is A Mystery, And Today Is A Gift. That Is Why It Is Called The Present.""
— — Master Oogway from Kung Fu Panda